Senior sports reporter with The Age

Melbourne Victory is poised to sign Greek national team captain Giorgios Karagounis to lead the team's assault on the 2013-14 A-League title.

The club is currently in negotiations with the vastly experienced midfielder, who, like Socceroo goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer, is looking for a new club after being released by English Premier League team Fulham in the off season.

It is understood Victory coach Ange Postecoglou met with the midfielder, who is a set piece specialist, in Athens earlier this month to sell the idea of a move to the A-League to the former Panathinaikos, Inter Milan and Benfica star.

He could play a key role for Postecoglou's side, anchoring the midfield either alongside current Socceroo Mark Milligan, or allowing the Victory boss to drop Milligan back to play as a central defender, a position which Victory needs to shore up if it is to mount a serious challenge for the next championship.

Advertisement

Karagounis was a key member of the Greek team that pulled off a stunning upset in the 2004 European championships where he scored the opening goal of the tournament against Portugal in a shock Greek win. He holds the record for the number of caps for any player from that country, having made more than 125 appearances in the royal blue shirt of the Hellenes.

If Victory is to capture his signature it will have to beat off offers from several European clubs, including Panathinaikos, the Athens team where Karagounis initially made his name.

But the fact that Melboune is the biggest ''Greek'' city in the world outside the nation's capital and has a huge diaspora to offer cultural, social and commercial support should play in Victory's favour.

Karagounis might not be quite as big a name as Alessandro Del Piero, but he has the potential to galvanise what is already a large Victory supporter base even further.

Greek fans made South Melbourne one of the biggest and best supported clubs in the old NSL, and while many have transferred their allegiance to Victory in the eight years that the A-League has been in existence, some have still to do so.

If the current Greek national team captain – Karagounis played for Greece in their 1-0 World Cup qualifying win over Lithuania at the weekend – signs for the club then any holdouts could be expected to transfer their allegiance.

Karagounis made 25 appearances and scored one goal for Fulham in the Premiership last season, having joined in September 2012 from Panathinaikos, which he captained to Greek championship success.

He would be one of the highest profile European names to have come to the A-League if Victory succeed in getting him to put pen to paper. It would also further the chances for the A-League to sell itself as a TV product in Europe. When Del Piero signed for Sydney the Sky Blues games were shown in Italy, while a huge Japanese media presence accompanied Shinji Ono's arrival in West Sydney last year too.